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[Complete Results]
"TRIATHLON SURVIVOR 2002" replaced the traditional G1 Tag League to conclude the touring year for New Japan. It was a unique concept that was trialed firstly by the junior heavyweights, and perfected in time for the more important heavyweight version. Each match took place under best out of three falls rules, and each contest was virtually a match itself. The first fall was a six man tag match, in which the winner and loser had to step out. Then a tag match took place, once more with the winner and loser stepping out. If a final fall was needed, the two remaining participants clashed in a singles match to decide a winner. If the time limit expired during their match, it returned to it's six man tag form, with the next fall deciding the match. Many unique trios were formed for the tournament, including some new and returning faces, such as Shinya Makabe in his first full tour since returning from his overseas excursion, and Mike Barton & Jim Steele, who jumped from All Japan to New Japan in time for this series, one year after reaching the G1 Tag League final. The league opened on 11/22 in Tokyo, running through until 12/4 in Hiroshima, where the two highest ranked teams would square off. The tour continued after that, with the three major IWGP titles on the line over two days, including complete New Japan vs. Makai Club warfare on 12/10 in Osaka to conclude the tour!
Foreign participation:
Rick Steiner: 11/22 to 12/5
Scott Norton (L.A. Dojo): All shows
Curry Man (Michinoku Pro): 12/10 only
GOKU-DO (Team 2000): All shows
Stampede Kid: All shows
Super Crazy (CMLL): All shows
Special participation:
Kazunari Murakami (Makai Club): 12/1, 12/4 to 12/10
Minoru Fujita (Kaientai Dojo): 11/22, 11/24 to 12/5, 12/10
TAKA Michinoku (Kaientai Dojo): 11/22, 11/24 to 12/5, 12/10
Tiger Mask: 12/10 only
Triathlon Survivor scoring system: Win (1 point), loss (0 points)
1. Yuji Nagata, Mike Barton & Jim Steele
2. Tatsumi Fujinami, Masahiro Chono & Hiroyoshi Tenzan
3. Manabu Nakanishi, Osamu Nishimura & Yutaka Yoshie
4. Kenzo Suzuki, Hiroshi Tanahashi & Blue Wolf
5. Scott Norton, Rick Steiner & Shinya Makabe
6. Tadao Yasuda, Ryushi Yanagisawa & Makai #1
Points of note:
(11/22) 23-year-old Ryusuke Taguchi debuted in the Korakuen Hall opening match, facing Yano. The newcomer submitted to a crab hold, and his long climb up the ladder began.
(11/22) Canadian youngster, Stampede Kid, and CMLL star, Super Crazy, both made their New Japan debuts, teaming with GOKU-DO against Heat, Kakihara & Naruse. Although they were on the losing side, both avoided direct defeat, GOKU-DO falling to the Kaki Cutter.
(11/22) In preparation for his 11/30 Pancrase fight with Minoru Suzuki, Liger faced technician, Iizuka, in a ground-based match. He picked up a valuable draw against the heavyweight, the two deadlocked when the 15 minute time limit expired.
(11/22) Chono & Tenzan faced a mystery team from Kaientai Dojo, which happened to be the company's top stars, TAKA Michinoku and the returning Minoru Fujita. The two juniors heavyweights were no match for the IWGP Tag Team Champions, Fujita falling to Tenzan's TTD in under 5 minutes. Tenzan hurled abuse after the match, outraged by the lack of competition.
(11/22) The first Triathlon Survivor match of the tour saw Gotch-ism (Nakanishi, Nishimura & Yoshie) face Norton, Steiner & Makabe. Makabe's recent run of form hit a hurdle when he was German suplexed by Nakanishi in the opening fall, Gotch-ism going 1-0 up. The gaijin strong men tied it up when Norton powerbombed Yoshie, but Nishimura added Steiner's name to his ever-growing list of upsets, cradling him with a ground Cobra Twist in the singles match to seal a 2-1 opening day win for Gotch-ism!
(11/22) The main event saw Nagata, Barton & Steele face Kings of the Hill (Kenzo, Tanahashi & Wolf) in Barton & Steele's debut as New Japan regulars, and their first appearance in the company since last year's G1 Tag League, where they fared so well. This new trio was far too strong for the bold young lions, winning the match in two straight falls. Barton & Steele wrapped it up, downing Tanaken when Steele used his Turbo Drop II on Tanahashi. Following the match, Nagata's 12/10 title challenger, Kazunari Murakami, attacked from behind and humiliated him by using his own Nagata Lock II! A furious Nagata swore revenge on Murakami.
(11/23) Barton & Steele picked up a big tag win, defeating Nakanishi & Yoshie in a tough 16 1/2 minute match. This was a prelude to the Triathlon Survivor match involving both teams on 11/24, and ended when Yoshie fell to the Barton Death Star.
(11/23) KOTH suffered second complete defeat, today falling to Norton, Steiner & Makabe. Makabe hit a Dragon suplex hold to pin Tanahashi in the six man tag, and Steiner Death Valley bombed Wolf in the second fall to seal it.
(11/23) The main event saw the odd team of Fujinami, Chono & Tenzan open their campaign with a big 2-1 win over the Makai Club. Yasuda was DQ'd in the first fall for using an illegal choke on Fujinami, his rulebreaking costing him this time. Yanagisawa tied it up in the tag fall, scoring his second pinfall victory over Chono after striking the New Japan foreman with a jumping knee kick. It came down to Tenzan and Makai #1, and Tenzan handed the masked man his first pinfall defeat, using the TTD for the 1-2-3.
(11/24) Nagata, Barton & Steele suffered their first loss of the tournament, falling to Gotch-ism. The original six man tag was a stalemate, with the 30 minute time limit expiring. Since draws were a non-entity in the tournament, the match was restarted in sudden death format, and Yoshie used a diving body press at the 34 minute mark to pin Steele.
(11/26) The Makai Club scored a much needed first tournament win, ending Gotch-ism's unbeaten run by defeating them. Yoshie continued to impress when he scored his second pinfall win over Yanagisawa in the opening fall, once more ascending the turnbuckles and hitting a diving body press. Yasuda tied it up though, throwing one of his questionable straight right punches at Nakanishi, and pinning him. Makai #1 managed a big singles win to complete the victory for Makai, using the ever-so-familiar Makai (Devil) Windmill suplex hold on Nishimura.
(11/26) In a huge main event, Nagata, Barton & Steele faced Fujinami, Chono & Tenzan. And surprisingly, they defeated the all-star team by 2-0, not even dropping a fall. Nagata used an inside cradle on Fujinami in the six man tag, leaving Chono & Tenzan and Barton & Steele. The new gaijin recruits continued to turn heads, beating the IWGP Tag Team Champions when, like last year, Barton pinned Chono. With such a commanding win, Barton & Steele petitioned further for a shot at the tag belts.
(11/28) TAKA & Fujita got their first New Japan win as a tag team, entering the junior division and defeating El Samurai & Heat when TAKA used a backslide on Samurai. The Kaientai Dojo due were more at home facing other junior heavyweights, and it showed as they were victors.
(11/28) The Makai Club continued to struggle in the tournament, today losing to Norton, Steiner & Makabe. Norton and Yanagisawa were counted out in the opening six man tags, meaning both teams lost a fall, and the follow-up tag would decide the match. Makabe sealed it in under 10 minutes, striking Makai #1 with a lariat for the victory.
(11/28) On a tough day for KOTH, where their mentor, Kensuke Sasaki, finally confirmed his New Japan departure, and when Tanahashi was attacked and stabbed in the back by a female earlier in the day, they were forced to forfeit their Triathlon Survivor match against Gotch-ism. They vowed not to give up yet though, and managed to recruit Yano as their partner for remaining matches. Nagata stepped in for a makeshift non-tournament main event today, teaming with Kenzo & Wolf against Gotch-ism, but even with the IWGP Heavyweight Champion at their side, the young lions fell, Suzuki staying down for the count after a Yoshie diving body press.
(11/29) In a rematch of Iizuka's return match in early October, he faced Nishimura again. This time they were deadlocked, as because of their low positioning on the card, they only had 15 minutes to work with. Unexpectedly, after their near-25 minute meeting in October, they fought to a time limit draw today.
(11/29) KOTH, now with Yano as their replacement partner, once more fell in consecutive falls, this time to Fujinami, Chono & Tenzan. Fujinami pinned Wolf with a backslide to seal the first fall in 9 minutes, leaving Chono & Tenzan vs. Kenzo & Yano. To the surprise of many, they lasted until just before the 20 minute mark, putting up a spirited fight. Although they were eventually overcome, Yano falling to the TTD, the experience was vital for them.
(11/29) In another complete victory, Nagata, Barton & Steele continued to look dominant, downing the Makai Club. Yasuda was again DQ'd in the opening fall, Barton this time his victim. Nagata sealed the straight falls victory, using a wrist-clutch Exploder on Yanagisawa, and pinning the former Pancrase star.
(12/1) Leading into their upcoming IWGP Jr. Title match, Kakihara scored a crucial six man tag victory over his Tokushima opponent, Kanemoto, using a cross armbreaker to submit the champion.
(12/1) Luchadore, Super Crazy, picked up an upset win, defeating Heat in a singles match. Heat, having little luck in singles matches since debuting, was pinned after a moonsault press.
(12/1) Murakami wrestled his first match of the tour, teaming with Yasuda and Yanagisawa to defeat Iizuka, Kenzo & Naruse. Murakami impressively submitted team captain Iizuka, the man who managed to overwhelm Murakami in 2000 with two high profile Tokyo Dome wins.
(12/1) Nagata, Barton & Steele became the first team to reach the final, after defeating Norton, Steiner & Makabe by 2-1 today. Another double countout opening fall with Barton and Steiner meant that the second fall tag match would settle things. Steele used the Turbo Drop II on Makabe, which gave Team Nagata it's fourth point and a place in the final.
(12/1) Gotch-ism were denied their fourth point when they lost to Fujinami, Chono & Tenzan in a close match, the first to exceed 30 minutes. The opening fall was important, as it saw Nishimura pin his mentor, Fujinami, for the first time, using a ground Cobra Twist for the 3 count! Chono & Tenzan tied it up, defeating Nakanishi & Yoshie when Chono Yakuza kicked Yoshie. It came down to eternal rivals, Nakanishi and Tenzan, but with only three minutes of time remaining, they had little chance to do anything before the bell rang. With the time limit expiring and the teams tied, it was back to a six man tag, and after a couple of minutes, Fujinami avenged his opening fall loss, using a ground Cobra Twist, the same move that defeated him, to pin Nishimura!
(12/2) Crazy made it two big singles wins in a row, today pinning Samurai after a Liger bomb, and perhaps putting his name in contention for a future IWGP Jr. Title shot.
(12/2) Wolf & Heat defeated the Kaientai Dojo menaces, but only by DQ after Fujita tore Heat's mask off, and taunted him for hiding his true identity.
(12/2) A very important Triathlon Survivor match, which would determine the second finalist, headlined in Imabari, with Fujinami, Chono & Tenzan facing Norton, Steiner & Makabe. Team Fujinami needed a win to advance, but a loss would allow Gotch-ism to creep into the final. Things started badly, Team Norton winning the opening fall when Steiner avenged his 7/20 IWGP Tag Team Title direct loss to Chono by pinning him after a powerslam. Fujinami & Tenzan, a team no one would have expected to see before recently, downed Norton & Makabe, Fujinami backsliding Makabe. This left Norton and Tenzan, but Tenzan wasn't able to down the gaijin ace, falling to a powerbomb. The loss set up a Team Nagata vs. Gotch-ism final!
(12/3) The final match of the Triathlon Survivor group stages would have no impact on the upper half of the league table, but was about pride, as the losing team would finish last. It pitted the slumping Makai Club against Kenzo, Wolf & Yano, the latter team major underdogs. Both teams dropped a fall when Yano held Yasuda out of the ring by a leg, causing a double countout. As a result, it came down to Kenzo & Wolf vs. Yanagisawa & Makai #1, with Kenzo handing the masked man his third pinfall loss of the tournament after hitting the Hagakure! So close to their title challenges, the Makai Club suffered complete humiliation, losing to the young lion team and subsequently falling into last place!
(12/4) Kakihara, having massive success on a big comeback tour for him after a lack of form, managed his second direct victory over Kanemoto in a six man tag, pinning him following the Kaki Cutter. These wins sent a stern warning to Kanemoto, who had to regain his own form in time for 12/7.
(12/4) With Yasuda absent in Hiroshima, Murakami led the Makai Club, and managed to guide them to an important win over Chono, Iizuka & Tenzan. The wild man once more submitted Iizuka with a cross armbreaker, these wins over Nagata's close friend sending an effective message to the ace.
(12/4) The 2002 Triathlon Survivor final took place, between two teams who had shown good strength, stamina and teamwork throughout the tournament, Nagata, Barton & Steele, and the only team to defeat them in the group stage, Nakanishi, Nishimura & Yoshie. The opening fall lasted 23 minutes, and was exhausting itself, coming to a close when Barton pinned Yoshie. Nakanishi & Nishimura tied it up after 31 minutes, defeating Nagata & Steele when Nishimura cradled the American, meaning those two had to step out. Meaning... Nagata vs. Nakanishi! The lifetime friends (and rivals) clashed for over six minutes in singles competition, despite being fatigued. Like in the G1, ace Nagata fell to Nakanishi, being pinned at the 37 1/2 minute mark with a German suplex hold! Gotch-ism, a unit of three distinctly different wrestlers, proved themselves to be the elite trio in New Japan, the only team to truly survive the triathlon!
(12/7) In an important tag match to help determine future challengers for the IWGP Tag Team Title, Nakanishi & Nishimura again faced Barton & Steele, this time in regular 2 vs. 2 competition. The 20 limit time limit wasn't enough for these two evenly matched tandems though, the result another time limit draw.
(12/7) In the last preliminary skirmish before the complete confrontation in Osaka, three of New Japan's pinnacles, Chono, Nagata & Tenzan, defeated Murakami, Yanagisawa & Makai #1. Murakami cost his team the match by attacking the referee, getting Makai #1 DQ'd.
(12/7) There was much doubt over Kanemoto's reign as IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Champion following Kakihara's dominance over him throughout the tour. The champion was just too strong when it came to singles warfare though, submitting Kakihara with an ankle hold to complete a successful V4 defense!
(12/10) Popular Michinoku Pro star, Curry Man, made his only appearance of the tour in Osaka, facing grizzled veteran, El Samurai. Samurai was able to cut back a cradle for the win.
(12/10) Fujinami & Nishimura reunited for the first time since the summer series, facing the masked Makais in the first of three New Japan vs. Makai Club matches on an important evening. The finish saw Fujinami use his patented Dragon sleeper on Makai #2, making it 1-0 to New Japan.
(12/10) Liger & Heat faced TAKA & Fujita in a big junior tag confrontation. After over 12 minutes of action, Fujita once again tore off Heat's mask, continuing to torment a man struggling to start a new phase of his career.
(12/10) Chono & Tenzan made a grueling V4 defense of the IWGP Tag Team Title, fending off a challenge from the Makai Club's Yasuda & Yanagisawa. A 20+ minute severe fight ended when Tenzan avenged his March IWGP Heavyweight Title challenge loss to Yasuda by TTD'ing him! New Japan sealed the series 2-0, but Makai had one last chance to salvage something from the show...
(12/10) Nagata had a fight on his hands when he made his V6 defense of the IWGP Heavyweight Title against "Terrorist of Heisei" Murakami. Murakami's ruthlessness led to Nagata's head being cut open, causing massive bloodshed. Murakami attempted to humiliate Nagata by trapping him in the Nagata Lock II, while Nagata's own blood poured on to Murakami's arm. Nagata survived it, showing the heart of a true Strong Style champion, and fought back, putting a very tough challenger away with a wrist-clutch Exploder! The loss for Murakami meant complete 3-0 defeat for the Makai Club! Nagata's victory confirmed a 1/4/03 Tokyo Dome main event of Nagata vs. Josh Barnett, IWGP Heavyweight Champion against a man who never lost the UFC Heavyweight Title in the octagon!
Miscellaneous:
The final standings of the 2002 Triathlon Survivor looked as follows,
1. Yuji Nagata, Mike Barton & Jim Steele [4]
2. Manabu Nakanishi, Osamu Nishimura & Yutaka Yoshie [3]
3. Scott Norton, Rick Steiner & Shinya Makabe [3]
4. Tatsumi Fujinami, Masahiro Chono & Hiroyoshi Tenzan [3]
5. Kenzo Suzuki, Hiroshi Tanahashi/Toru Yano & Blue Wolf* [1]
6. Tadao Yasuda, Ryushi Yanagisawa & Makai #1 [1]
* Toru Yano replaced Hiroshi Tanahashi as Kenzo Suzuki & Blue Wolf's tag team partners when Tanahashi was injured.
Final: Manabu Nakanishi, Osamu Nishimura & Yutaka Yoshie beat Yuji Nagata, Mike Barton & Jim Steele (37:33) by 2-1.
- Yuji Nagata, Mike Barton & Jim Steele beat Manabu Nakanishi, Osamu Nishimura & Yutaka Yoshie (22:54) when Barton used the Barton buster on Yoshie.
- Manabu Nakanishi & Osamu Nishimura beat Yuji Nagata & Jim Steele (31:02) when Nishimura used a backslide on Steele.
- Manabu Nakanishi beat Yuji Nagata (37:33) with a German suplex hold.
After so much dominance on recent tours, the Makai Club were crushed by New Japan and forced to consider new strategies after this series. Although they picked up numerous tag victories, their three main chances to further the invasion were botched badly; last place in the Triathlon Survivor, and losses when trying to capture both major IWGP titles.
Back to: "FIGHTING SPIRIT SERIES 2002" (10/19/02 to 11/4/02)
Forward to: "THE SPIRAL II" (12/15/02)
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